Shrinkage. Ugh.

In Curly Hair Land, shrinkage gets a bad rap for the wrong reason. We, natural-haired women, are so focused on seeing length that we curse the shrinkage factor that comes with natural hair. After all, shrinkage belies our ‘true’ length and this creates the kind of frustration that not even the perfect wash & go results can abate.

But consider this, shrinkage indicates the health of a curl. Sure, some curls types inherently have more shrinkage than others but regardless of curl type, hair shrinks when its healthy! A healthy curl is an elastic one and it is this elasticity that contributes to its shrinkage factor.

Have you ever seen a damaged curl shrink?

So the next time you curse your hair’s shrinkage, think about your fellow curl friends who might be cutting off damaged ends to recover the spring factor.